DE102022206407A1 - ELECTRONIC PEDAL DEVICE - Google Patents

Abstract

An electronic pedal device is configured to perform an electronic pedal function using a basic configuration, and also performs a foldable function by adding some elements to the basic configuration to be usefully used in an autonomous vehicle.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT DISCLOSURE

Field of the present disclosure

The present disclosure relates to technology related to an electronic pedal device used as an accelerator pedal and a brake pedal in a vehicle.

Description of the prior art

An autonomous vehicle refers to an intelligent vehicle that uses autonomous driving technology so that the vehicle automatically travels to the destination without the driver manually controlling the steering wheel, accelerator pedal, brake, and the like.

When an autonomous driving situation is universally realized, the driver can choose an autonomous driving mode in which the vehicle automatically drives to the destination without the driver having to intervene manually.

In the autonomous driving mode, the driver can stretch his legs and rest comfortably, and the pedals (accelerator pedal, brake pedal) located in the lower place of the driver's seat, if they are constantly exposed indoors, may disturb the driver's rest or cause unintentional misoperation of the pedals, which could lead to an accident.

Therefore, there is a need to develop a technology related to a pedal device in which, in a manual driving mode in which the driver controls a vehicle manually, a pedal pad protrudes toward the driver and remains exposed so that the driver can operate it. and in an autonomous driving situation, the pedal pad is prevented from being exposed so that the driver cannot operate it, thereby ensuring comfortable rest for the driver and preventing misoperation for safety reasons.

In addition, an intelligent vehicle capable of autonomous driving can use an electronic pedal device that does not have a mechanical connection structure (e.g., cables) between a pedal and an accelerator system or between the pedal and a brake system.

The information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the disclosure and should not be taken as an endorsement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art that a person skilled in the art may have area is already known.

SHORT SUMMARY

Various aspects of the present disclosure are directed to providing an electronic pedal device that can be used for an autonomous vehicle, the basic configuration of which can be used to perform an electronic pedal function, and some elements can be added to the basic configuration to make a foldable to perform the function together.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, an electronic pedal device may include: a pedal case; a pedal arm rotatably coupled to the pedal housing via a hinge pin to be operated by a rider; a displacement sensor attached to the pedal housing and connected to the pedal arm to generate a signal related to a pedal function when the pedal arm rotates in response to the driver's manipulation; a link block provided to be spaced forward from the hinge pin and fixed to the pedal housing at a lower side of the pedal arm; a rotary link provided to be rotatably coupled to the link block and in contact with the pedal arm; and a spring module including first and second end portions pivotally coupled to the hinge pin and the pivot connection, respectively, for providing the pedal arm with its restoring force.

The electronic pedal device may further include a pedal arm stopper attached to the pedal housing at a position in front of the hinge pin and configured to restrict a full stroke position of the pedal arm by being in contact with the pedal arm during rotation of the pedal arm stands.

The top surface of the pedal arm stopper may be located above a center line connecting a center of the hinge pin and a center of rotation of the pivot link in a straight line.

The pedal arm may include: an operation unit configured to be operated by the driver; and an arm unit having a first end portion connected to the operation unit is connected, and has a second end portion which is coupled to the hinge pin, and is connected to the displacement sensor.

The pedal arm may have an organ-like structure in which a lower end portion of the arm unit is rotatably coupled to a bottom of a rear end portion of the pedal housing via the hinge pin and the operation unit rotates forward and backward at a top thereof around the hinge pin at a bottom thereof.

The rotary joint may include: a pair of link units rotatably coupled to opposite side faces of the link block; and a connection pin that connects the connection units and comes into contact with the arm unit to support the pedal arm, and to which the spring module is rotatably coupled.

Two arm units of the pedal arm may be arranged in parallel to be spaced from each other on a left side and a right side thereof; and the spring module can be arranged to be arranged between two arm units.

The electronic pedal device can be used as an accelerator pedal device or a brake pedal device.

Further, an electronic pedal device according to the present disclosure may include: a pedal case; a pedal arm rotatably coupled to the pedal housing via a hinge pin to be operated by a rider; a displacement sensor attached to the pedal housing and connected to the pedal arm to generate a signal related to a pedal function when the pedal arm rotates in response to the driver's manipulation; a link block provided to be spaced forward from the hinge pin to be located under the pedal arm and configured to slide with respect to the pedal case; a rotary link provided to be rotatably coupled to the link block and in contact with the pedal arm; a spring module including first and second end portions rotatably coupled to the hinge pin and the pivot connection, respectively, for providing the pedal arm with its restoring force; and a foldable actuator attached to the pedal housing and contacting the connection block and the pivot connection during operation to operate for a folded-up condition or a tucked-in condition of the pedal arm.

The electronic pedal device may further include: a return spring including first and second end portions supported by the pedal housing and the link block to provide a return force to the sliding link block.

The electronic pedal device may further include: a printed circuit board (PCB) fixed to the pedal case and including a function of controlling the operation of the foldable actuator.

The pedal arm may include: an operation unit configured to be operated by the driver; and an arm unit having a first end portion connected to the operation unit and a second end portion coupled to the hinge pin and connected to the displacement sensor.

The rotary joint may include: a pair of link units rotatably coupled to opposite side faces of the link block; and a connecting pin that connects the connecting units and comes into contact with the arm unit to support the pedal arm, and to which the spring module is rotatably coupled.

A guide groove and a guide protrusion may be formed on the link block and the pedal case, respectively, and sliding movement of the link block is guided by the guide groove and the guide protrusion.

A stopper projection for limiting movement of the link block in a predetermined direction may be formed on a front end portion of the guide projection in a direction orthogonal to the guide projection.

The foldable actuator may include: a motor fixed to the pedal case at a side of the connection block and operated by a controller of the circuit board; a guide block which moves linearly along a lead screw which rotates during operation of the motor to be in contact with or to be disengaged from the connection block and which, when in contact with the connection block, controls the movement of the connection blocks restricted; and a triangular guide which is connected to the guide block to move together with the guide block and which is inserted under the pivot connection to provide a force for lifting the pivot connection to be applied at the top when the guide block moves to come into contact with a front surface of the connection block.

The triangular guide may be located below the pivot link when the guide block is in contact with the front of the link block to restrict movement of the link block, and the full stroke position of the pedal arm may be restricted when the pivot link is in contact with the triangular guide stands when the pedal arm is rotated about the hinge pin according to the driver's operation.

When the pedal arm is rotated about the hinge pin according to the driver's operation in a state where the guide block restricts the movement of the link block, the displacement sensor can generate a signal related to the pedal operation.

When the guide block releases the link block due to the movement of the guide block by the operation of the motor in a state where the guide block is in contact with the link block to limit the movement of the link block, the link block may move due to an elastic force of the return spring move in a direction opposite to the hinge pin, the rotary link can rotate toward the lower portion of the pedal housing due to the elastic force of the spring module, when the link block moves, the pedal arm can rotate around the hinge pin in one direction due to its own weight , in which the pedal arm is inserted into the pedal housing when the rotary joint rotates, and thus the pedal arm can be in a hidden state in which its exposure to the driver is blocked.

The link block can be moved in a direction toward the hinge pin when the guide block comes into contact with the link block due to movement of the guide block by operation of the motor in a state where the pedal arm is hidden, the triangular guide can be under the Pivot link are inserted and lifts the pivot link up, when the guide block moves in a direction in which the guide block comes into contact with the link block, the pedal arm can rotate around the hinge pin in a direction protruding from the pedal housing in a state by being supported by the rotary joint when the rotary joint rotates upwards due to the triangular guide, and thus the pedal arm can be in a folded-up state in which driver's operation is possible.

An electronic pedal device according to the present disclosure is advantageous in that its basic configuration can be used to perform an electronic pedal function, and some elements can be added to the basic configuration to perform a foldable function together, so that the electronic pedal device for an autonomous vehicle is useful.

Moreover, the pedal device according to the present disclosure is advantageous in that it is arranged in an organ-like manner to improve operability for the driver and minimize ankle fatigue; it includes a high-load spring module so that the pedal force, which is required differently for each vehicle type, can be adjusted or tuned; Consequently, costs can be saved; and by simplification of the configuration, assembly reduction and material cost saving can be achieved.

The methods and apparatus of the present disclosure have other features and advantages that are apparent or will be set forth in more detail in the accompanying drawings contained herein and the following detailed description, which together serve to explain certain principles of the present disclosure .

character list

• 1 12 shows an exploded view of an electronic pedal device according to the present disclosure;
• 2 FIG. 12 is a view exemplifying the coupled state of FIG 1 represents;
• 3 Fig. 14 is a view exemplifying a state in which a pedal box of Figs 2 is removed;
• 4 Fig. 14 is a view exemplifying when a driver does not operate a pedal arm;
• 5 shows a view exemplifying when the driver presses the pedal arm in 4 kicks and presses it;
• 6 12 shows an exploded view of an electronic pedal device to which a foldable function has been added in accordance with the present disclosure;
• 7 and 8th FIG. 12 shows views exemplifying the coupled state of FIG 6 represent represent and represent a state in which a pedal arm is folded up;
• 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 and 13 12 are views showing when a pedal arm is folded up;
• 14 Fig. 14 is a view exemplifying a state in which a driver operates the pedal arm flip-up normally; and
• 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 and 20 12 show views showing when a pedal arm is in a hidden state.

It should be understood that the accompanying drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various features that illustrate the principles of the present disclosure. The specific design features of the present disclosure as incorporated herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes, will be determined in part by the particular application and work environment.

In the figures, reference numbers refer to the same or equivalent parts of the present disclosure throughout the different figures of the drawing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present disclosure(s), examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. Although the present disclosure(s) will be described in connection with exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, this description is not intended to limit the present disclosure(s) to those exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. On the other hand, the present disclosure(s) is intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, but also various alternatives, modifications, equivalents, and other embodiments that may be included within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. as defined by the appended claims.

A specific structural or functional description of embodiments of the present disclosure, which is included in the specification or application, is only provided to describe the exemplary embodiments according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. Therefore, the embodiments of the present disclosure may be embodied in various forms, and the present disclosure should not be construed as limited to the embodiments described in the specification or application.

Various changes and modifications can be made to the embodiments according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, and therefore various embodiments are shown in the drawings and described in the specification or application. However, it should be understood that embodiments according to the concept of the present disclosure are not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, but the present disclosure includes all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

Terms such as "a first" and/or "a second" may be used to describe various elements, but the elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are intended only distinguish one element from other elements For example, a first element may be referred to as a second element, and similarly, a second element may be referred to as a second element, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In the event that an Element is referred to as being "connected" to or "accessed" by other Elements, it should be understood that not only is the Element directly connected to or accessed from the other Elements, but also another element may exist between them. In contrast, where a component is referred to as being "directly connected" to another component or "directly accessed" from another component, it should be understood that there is no component in between. The other terms used to describe a relationship between structural elements, i.e. "between" and merely between" or "adjacent/adjacent" and "immediately adjacent/adjacent" should be interpreted similarly to the description above.

The terms used in the present disclosure are only used to describe specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. A singular term may include a plural term unless they are definitely different in a context. As used herein, the term “comprising” or “comprising/having” is intended to specify the presence of the mentioned feature, number, step, operation, element, component, or combination thereof and should be construed to include the possible presence or addition of one or multiple other features, numbers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical and scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one skilled in the art to which this disclosure pertains. Such terms, as defined in a commonly used dictionary, may be interpreted to have the meanings appropriate to the contextual meanings in the relevant art and are not to be interpreted to have ideal or overly formal meanings unless clearly defined in the present disclosure.

A control unit (controller) according to exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by a non-volatile memory configured to store data associated with an algorithm configured to control operations of various vehicle components, or software instructions for reproducing the algorithm , and a processor arranged to perform the operations as described below using the data stored in the corresponding memory. In this case, the memory and the processor can be implemented as individual chips. Alternatively, the memory and processor can be implemented as an integrated single chip. The processor may be in the form of one or more processors.

The present disclosure can be modified in many ways and includes various exemplary embodiments, which are described in detail below. However, it should be understood that the specific embodiments are not intended to limit the present disclosure thereto, and cover all modifications, equivalents, and substitutions falling within the spirit and technical scope of the present disclosure.

Hereinafter, an electronic pedal device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As in 1 until 5 Illustrated, an electronic pedal device according to the present disclosure includes: a pedal case 100; a pedal arm 300 rotatably coupled to the pedal housing 100 via a hinge pin 200 and operated by a rider; a displacement sensor 400 fixed to the pedal housing 100 and connected to the pedal arm 300 to generate a signal related to a pedal function when the pedal arm 300 rotates; a connecting block 500 provided so as to be spaced forward from the hinge pin 200 and fixed to the pedal housing 100 at an underside of the pedal arm 300; a rotary link 600 provided such that it is rotatably coupled to the link block 500 and is in contact with the pedal arm 300; and a spring module 700 including opposite end portions rotatably coupled to the hinge pin 200 and the pivot joint 600, respectively, to provide the pedal arm 300 with the restoring force.

The pedal case 100 is formed in a hollow box shape, and in its interior are provided the pedal arm 300, the displacement sensor 400, the link block 500, the rotary link 600, the spring module 700, a later-described pedal arm stopper and the like, and a cover 110 is on opposite sides Detachably coupled sides thereof.

The pedal arm 300 includes: an operation unit 310 operated with a driver's foot; and an arm unit 320 having a portion connected to the operation unit 310 and a portion coupled to the hinge pin 200 and connected to the displacement sensor 400 .

The operation unit 310 and the arm unit 320 are formed so as to be connected to each other in an L-shape when viewed from the side, and accordingly an organ-like pedal device can be configured.

That is, the pedal arm 300 has an organ-like structure in which a lower portion of the arm unit 320 is rotatably coupled to a lower side of a rear end portion of the pedal housing 100 via the hinge pin 200 and the operating unit 310 is arranged around the hinge pin 200 on the upper side rotates forward and backward on a lower side, and the pad comprising an organ-like structure has the advantage of improving comfort, improving the operating feeling and reducing the degree of ankle fatigue during the driver's operation compared to the hanging structure minimized.

The operation unit 310 of the pedal arm 300 extends through a housing hole 120 formed in the pedal case 100 and is inserted into the pedal case 100 or protrudes from the pedal case 100 according to the rotation of the pedal arm 300, and the arm unit 320 of the pedal arm 300 is independent of the rotation of the pedal arm 300 is always arranged in the pedal housing 100 .

In the pedal arm 300, the lower end portion of the arm unit 320 is coupled to be rotatable about the hinge pin 200 forward and backward with respect to the pedal case 100, and the operating unit 310 spaced upward from the hinge pin 200 is inserted into the pedal case inserted through the housing bore 120, which is arranged on the pedal housing 100, when the arm unit 320 rotates forward, and protrudes from the pedal housing 100 to be exposed to the rear on which the driver is located when the arm unit rotates backwards.

The operating unit 310 is provided so as to extend through the housing bore 120 formed on the pedal housing 100 to be inserted into the pedal housing 100 or protrude from the pedal housing 100 300 according to the rotation of the pedal arm, and the arm unit 320 is independent of the Rotation of the pedal arm 300 is always placed in the pedal housing 100 to be prevented from contacting the driver.

Therefore, when the driver operates the pedal arm 300 with his foot, the driver can operate only a surface of the operation unit 310 exposed from the pedal case 100, the arm unit 320 arranged in the pedal case 100 is prevented from contacting the driver's foot to come and cannot be operated, and consequently the erroneous operation of the driver can be prevented.

The displacement sensor 400 is coupled to a detection pin 330 provided on the pedal arm 300 , and when the pedal arm 300 rotates with respect to the pedal housing 100 , the displacement sensor 400 is actuated via the detection pin 330 .

The detection pins 330 are arranged above the hinge pin 200 coupled to the arm unit 320 of the pedal arm 300, and are formed so as to protrude from the opposite side surfaces of the arm unit 320, respectively.

The detection pins 330 are formed so as to protrude from the arm unit 320 between the operation unit 310 and the hinge pin 200 toward the opposite sides.

Since the detection pin 330 is disposed on the arm unit 320 of the pedal arm 300, the position of the displacement sensor 400 can be moved closer to the arm unit 320 side, and accordingly the overall size can be reduced.

The displacement sensor 400 performs detecting whether the pedal arm 300 returns to the home position when the pedal arm 300 rotates and a function of detecting the rotation of the pedal arm 300 when a rider steps on the pedal arm 300 and operates it.

The displacement sensor 400 comprises a permanent magnet and a printed circuit board (PCB) facing the permanent magnet, and thus detects the rotation angle of the pedal arm 300 through the change in magnetic field intensity according to the position change of the permanent magnet when the pedal arm 300 is rotated by the driver's operation to generate a signal in generate reference to pedal function.

The displacement sensor 400 may be one of an accelerator position detector (APS) for generating a signal related to acceleration or a brake pedal position detector (BPS) for generating a signal related to braking.

Therefore, the electronic pedal device according to the present disclosure can be used for either an accelerator pedal device or a brake pedal device, or can be used for both an accelerator pedal device and a brake pedal device.

The displacement sensor 400 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is a contact-type detector that is connected to the pedal arm 300 via the detector pin 330, but can also be embodied as a non-contact detector that only uses a permanent magnet and a printed circuit board (PCB) as required. includes.

The connecting block 500 is provided such that it is spaced forward from the hinge pin 200 and is fixed to the pedal housing 100 at an underside of the pedal arm 300 via a coupling member 800 such as a plurality of bolts or screws.

The rotary joint 600 includes: a pair of link units 610 rotatably coupled to opposite side faces of the link block 500; and a connecting pin 620 connecting the connecting units 610 connects and comes into contact with the arm unit 320 to support the pedal arm 300 and to which the spring module 700 is rotatably coupled.

Two link units 610 are arranged in parallel such that the front end portions are rotatably coupled to the opposite side surfaces of the link block 500, respectively, and the rear end portions of the link units 610 are connected by the link pin 620.

The connecting pin 620 is arranged to extend left/right to be provided so as to be in contact with the lower end portion of the arm unit 320 and thus support the pedal arm 300 from the underside thereof.

The spring module 700 is a high-load spring module and is intended to be placed between two arm units 320 of the pedal arm 300, and accordingly the external size of the pedal device can be reduced.

The front portion of the spring module 700 is rotatably coupled to the connecting pin 620 of the rotary joint 600, the rear portion of the spring module 700 is rotatably coupled to the hinge pin 200, and the spring module performs supplying the pedal arm 300 with the restoring force by elastic force.

A pedal device of a vehicle is required to have a high load during operation for safety reasons, and for this purpose, in an embodiment according to the present disclosure, the high-load spring module 700 is used to realize the required pedal force using the high-load spring module 700 .

The high-load spring module 700 can typically include two or more dampers and two or more springs arranged in series to implement the pedaling force.

The electronic pedal device according to the present disclosure further includes a pedal arm stopper 900 to be fixed to the pedal case 100 at a position in front of the hinge pin 200 .

The pedal arm stopper 900 is arranged between the hinge pin 200 and the detector pin 330 to be fixed to the underside of the pedal housing 100, and when the pedal arm 300 rotates, comes into contact with the pedal arm 300 to have a function of limiting a position perform full stroke of the pedal arm 300.

4 FIG. 14 illustrates a state in which a driver does not operate the pedal arm 300. FIG. 5 represents a state in which the driver clicks on the operating unit 310 of the pedal arm 300 in 4 steps and presses it.

As in 5 When the rider steps on and operates the operating unit 310 of the pedal arm 300 (F1), the pedal arm 300 rotates about the hinge pin 200 (R1), and the pivot link 600 rotates about the point coupled to the link block 500 (R2). In the present case, when the spring module 700 is compressed, the spring module 700 and the pivot connection 600 extend in a straight line.

Since the link block 500 is fixed to the pedal housing 100 through the coupling member 800, when the pedal arm 300 is operated, the stable rotation of the rotary link 600 can be caused.

When the driver releases the operating force from the pedal arm 300, the pedal arm 300 and the rotary joint 600 return to the initial state as shown in FIG 4 return.

Meanwhile, an upper surface of the pedal arm stopper 900 is located above a center line L1 connecting the center of the hinge pin 200 and the center of rotation of the pivot link 600 in a straight line.

When the driver steps on the pedal arm 300 and operates it (F1), the arm unit 320 of the pedal arm 300 comes into contact with the top of the pedal arm stopper 900, and in this case the full stroke position of the pedal arm 300 is limited, and when the driver releases the operating force from the pedal arm 300 , the pedal arm 300 returns to the initial state by the spring force of the spring module 700 .

In order for the operated pedal arm 300 to smoothly return to the initial state by the spring force of the spring module 700, the upper surface of the pedal arm stopper 900, which is in contact with the arm unit 320 of the pedal arm 300, is located above the center line L1.

When the upper surface of the pedal arm stopper 900 comes into contact with the arm unit 320 of the pedal arm 300 below the center line L1, there may be a problem that the pedal arm 300 does not return to the original position smoothly can, even if the spring force of the spring module 700 acts on the pedal arm 300.

The electronic pedal device according to the present disclosure may have both an electronic pedal function and a foldable function, and for the present purpose, it may be configured such that the link block can slide, and it may further include a foldable actuator and a return spring for returning the link block include.

That is, as in 6 until 20 1, an electronic pedal device according to the present disclosure includes: a pedal case 100; a pedal arm 300 rotatably coupled to the pedal housing 100 via a hinge pin 200 and operated by a rider; a displacement sensor 400 fixed to the pedal housing 100 and connected to the pedal arm 300 to generate a signal related to a pedal function when the pedal arm 300 rotates; a link block 500 provided such that it is spaced forward from the hinge pin 200 to be located under the pedal arm 300 and slides with respect to the pedal case 100; a rotary link 600 provided to be rotatably coupled to the link block 500 and to be in contact with the pedal arm 300; a spring module 700 including opposite end portions rotatably coupled to the hinge pin 200 and the rotary joint 600, respectively, to provide the pedal arm 300 with the restoring force; and a foldable actuator 1000 fixed to the pedal housing 100 and operatively coming into contact with the link block 500 and the pivot link 600 to operate for the flip-up state or the tucked state of the pedal arm 300.

The pedal case 100 has a hollow box shape, and the pedal arm 300, the displacement sensor 400, the link block 500, the rotary link 600, the spring module 700, the foldable actuator 1000, a return spring and a later-described circuit board and the like are provided in its interior. and a cover 110 is coupled to opposite sides thereof in a detachable manner.

The pedal arm 300 includes: an operation unit 310 operated with a foot of a driver; and an arm unit 320 having an end portion connected to the operation unit 310 and an end portion coupled to the hinge pin 200 and connected to the displacement sensor 400 .

The operation unit 310 and the arm unit 320 are formed so as to be connected to each other in an L-shape when viewed from the side, and accordingly an organ-like pedal device can be configured.

That is, the pedal arm 300 has an organ-like structure in which a lower portion of the arm unit 320 is rotatably coupled to a bottom of a rear end portion of the pedal housing 100 via the hinge pin 200, and the operating unit 310 moves forward and backward around the hinge pin 200 on the top rotates backward, and the pad with the organ-like structure has the advantage of improving comfort, improving the operating feeling, and minimizing the degree of ankle fatigue during the driver's operation compared to the hanging structure.

The operation unit 310 of the pedal arm 300 extends through a housing hole 120 formed in the pedal case 100 and is inserted into the pedal case 100 or protrudes from the pedal case 100 according to the rotation of the pedal arm 300, and the arm unit 320 of the pedal arm 300 is independent of the rotation of the pedal arm 300 is always arranged in the pedal housing 100 .

In the pedal arm 300, the lower end portion of the arm unit 320 is coupled to be rotatable about the hinge pin 200 forward and backward with respect to the pedal housing 100, and the operating unit 310, which is spaced upward from the hinge pin 200, is inserted into the Pedal housing through the housing bore 120, which is arranged on the pedal housing 100, inserted when the arm unit 320 rotates forward, and protrudes from the pedal housing 100 to be exposed to the rear where the driver is when the Arm unit rotates backwards or backwards.

The operating unit 310 is provided so as to extend through the housing bore 120 formed on the pedal housing 100 to be inserted into the pedal housing 100 or protrude from the pedal housing 100 according to the rotation of the pedal arm 300, and the arm unit 320 is independent of the Rotation of the pedal arm 300 is always placed in the pedal housing 100 to be prevented from contacting the driver.

Therefore, when the rider operates the pedal arm 300 with his foot, the rider can operate only a surface of the operation unit 310 exposed from the pedal case 100, the arm unit 320 arranged in the pedal case 100 becomes thereon is prevented from coming into contact with the driver's foot and cannot be operated, and consequently the driver's erroneous operation can be prevented.

The displacement sensor 400 is coupled to a detection pin 330 provided on the pedal arm 300 , and when the pedal arm 300 rotates with respect to the pedal housing 100 , the displacement sensor 400 is actuated via the detection pin 330 .

The detection pins 330 are arranged above the hinge pin 200 coupled to the arm unit 320 of the pedal arm 300, and are formed so as to protrude from the opposite side surfaces of the arm unit 320, respectively.

The detection pins 330 are formed so as to protrude from the arm unit 320 between the operation unit 310 and the hinge pin 200 toward the opposite sides.

Since the detection pin 330 is disposed on the arm unit 320 of the pedal arm 300, the position of the displacement sensor 400 can be moved closer to the arm unit 320 side, and accordingly the overall size can be reduced.

The displacement sensor 400 performs detecting whether the pedal arm 300 returns to the home position when the pedal arm 300 rotates and a function of detecting the rotation of the pedal arm 300 when a rider steps on the pedal arm 300 and operates it.

The displacement sensor 400 includes a permanent magnet and a printed circuit board opposed to the permanent magnet, and thus detects the rotation angle of the pedal arm 300 through the change in magnetic field intensity according to the change in position of the permanent magnet when the pedal arm 300 is rotated by the driver's operation to generate a signal with respect to a generate pedal function.

The displacement sensor 400 may be one of an accelerator pedal position detector (APS) for generating a signal related to acceleration or a brake pedal position detector (BPS) for generating a signal related to braking.

Therefore, the electronic pedal device according to the present disclosure can be used as either an accelerator pedal device or a brake pedal device, or can be used for both an accelerator pedal device and a brake pedal device.

The displacement sensor 400 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is a contact-type detector that is connected to the pedal arm 300 via the detector pin 330, but may be configured as a non-contact detector that includes only a permanent magnet and a circuit board, if necessary.

The connecting block 500 is provided such that it is spaced forward from the hinge pin 200 to be located under the pedal arm 300 and slides back and forth in an inclined direction.

For the present purpose, a linear guide groove 510 is formed on a bottom surface of the link block 500, a guide projection 130 is formed on the pedal case 100, and the link block 500 is provided in a structure that the guide groove 510 and the guide projection 130 slidably along one direction can be moved, which is inclined in a front-up direction and a rear-down direction.

In contrast, a structure in which a guide groove is formed on the pedal case 100 and a guide protrusion is formed on a bottom surface of the link block 500 is also possible.

At the front end portion of the guide projection 130 formed on the pedal case 100, in a direction orthogonal to the guide projection 130, a stopper projection 140 for limiting the forward movement of the link block 500 is formed.

In addition, the rearward movement of the link block 500 is limited by a return spring 2000 .

That is, the return spring 2000 is provided such that its both end portions are supported by the pedal case 100 and the link block 500 and performs providing restoring force for the forward movement of the link block 500 which has slid rearward.

The return spring is provided such that the front portion of the return spring 2000 is supported by the rear surface of the link block 500, and the rear portion of the return spring 2000 is supported by a support projection 150 provided on the pedal case 100.

The swivel joint 600 comprises: a pair of link units 610 rotatably connected to opposite side surfaces of the link connection blocks 500 are coupled; and a connecting pin 620 connecting the connecting units 610 and coming into contact with the arm unit 320 to support the pedal arm 300, and to which the spring module 700 is rotatably coupled.

Two link units 610 are arranged in parallel such that the front end portions are respectively rotatably coupled to the opposite side faces of the link block 500 , and the rear end portions of the link units 610 are connected by the hinge pin 620 .

The connecting pin 620 is arranged to extend left/right to be provided so as to be in contact with the lower end portion of the arm unit 320 and thus support the pedal arm 300 from the underside thereof.

The spring module 700 is a high-load spring module, and is arranged to be sandwiched between two arm units 320 of the pedal arm 300, and accordingly the outer size of the pedal device can be reduced.

The front portion of the spring module 700 is rotatably coupled to the hinge pin 620 of the rotary joint 600, the rear portion of the spring module 700 is rotatably coupled to the hinge pin 200, and the spring module performs providing the pedal arm 300 with the restoring force by elastic force.

A pedal device of a vehicle is required to have a high load during operation for safety reasons, and for this purpose, in an embodiment according to the present disclosure, the high-load spring module 700 is used to realize the required pedal force using the high-load spring module 700 .

The high-load spring module 700 can typically include two or more dampers and two or more springs arranged in series to realize the pedaling force.

An electronic pedal device according to the present disclosure includes the foldable actuator 1000 that unfolds and conceals the pedal arm 300 to perform a foldable function, and further includes a PCB 3000 that includes a function of controlling the operation of the foldable actuator 1000 .

The circuit board 3000 can perform not only a function of controlling the operation of the foldable actuator 1000 but also a function of detecting an error and CAN communication with a component related to a pedal.

The foldable actuator 1000 is provided to be arranged on the side portion of the connection block 500, and the circuit board 3000 is provided to be coupled to the cover 110 and arranged in the pedal case 100. As shown in FIG.

When the pedal arm 300 is rotated by the operation of the foldable actuator 1000 and the operation unit 310 protrudes from the pedal housing 100 through the housing bore 120, the pedal arm 300 is in a flip-up state in which operation by a driver is possible (see FIG 7 until 13 ), and on the contrary, when the operating unit 310 is inserted into the pedal housing 100 through the housing bore 120, the pedal arm 300 is in a concealed state in which the pedal arm is prevented from being exposed to the driver (see FIG 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 and 20 ), therefore, the pedal electronic device according to the present disclosure can realize a foldable function during operation of the foldable actuator 1000 .

The foldable actuator 1000 includes: a motor 1100 which is provided to be fixed to the pedal case 100 on a side of the connection block 500 and which is operated by the control of the PCB 3000; a guide block 1300 which moves linearly along a lead screw 1200 which rotates during operation of the motor 1100 to be in contact with or to be disengaged from the connection block 500 and which when in contact with the connection block 500 stands, restricts the movement of the connection block 500; and a triangular guide 1400 which is intended to be connected to the guide block 1300 to move together with the guide block 1300 and which is inserted under the rotary joint 600 to exert a force to lift the rotary joint 600 upwards, when the guide block 1300 moves to come into contact with the front of the connection block 500.

Motor 1100 is a rotary motor, lead screw 1200 rotates as motor 1100 rotates, and guide block 1300, coupled to lead screw 1200, moves linearly along lead screw 1200 as lead screw 1200 rotates.

A side surface of the connection block 500 is formed as an inclined surface, helping the guide block 1300 to smoothly move toward the front of the connection block 500 moves when the guide block 1300 comes into contact.

The triangular guide 1400 is located below the pivot link 600 when the guide block 1300 is in contact with the front of the link block 500 to restrict the movement of the link block 500, and the full stroke position of the pedal arm 300 is restricted because the pivot link 600 in Contacts the triangular guide 1400 when the pedal arm 300 rotates about the hinge pin 200 by the driver's operation.

Further, when the pedal arm 300 rotates around the hinge pin 200 by the driver's operation in a state where the guide block 1300 restricts the movement of the link block 500, the displacement sensor 400 generates a signal related to the pedal operation to perform a normal electronic pedal operation .

7 until 13 12 illustrate a flip-up state in which the operation unit 310 of the pedal arm 300 protrudes from the pedal housing 100 through the housing hole 120, and in the flip-up state, a rider can step on the pedal arm 300 to directly and manually operate the pedal arm.

14 12 illustrates the state when a driver steps on and operates the operating unit 310 of the pedal arm 300 in a state where the pedal arm 300 is folded up.

When the rider steps on and operates the operating unit 310 of the pedal arm 300 (F1), the pedal arm 300 rotates about the hinge pin 200 (R1) and the pivot link 600 rotates about the point coupled to the link block 500 (R2). In the present case, when the spring module 700 is compressed, the spring module 700 and the pivot connection 600 extend in a straight line.

Since the front of the link block 500 has been supported by the guide block 1300 to be fixed, the stable rotation of the rotary link 600 during the operation of the pedal arm 300 can be effected.

15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 and 20 12 illustrate the hidden state in which the pedal arm 300 rotates about the hinge pin 200 due to the operation of the foldable actuator 1000, so that the operating unit 310 is inserted into the pedal housing 100 through the housing bore 120. FIG.

As in 7 until 13 When the guide block 1300 releases the link block 500 due to the movement of the guide block 1300 by the operation of the motor 1100 in a state where the pedal arm 300 is folded up, the link block 500 moves in a forward direction by the spring force of the return spring 200 opposite to the hinge pin 200, the pivot link 600 rotates toward the lower portion of the pedal housing 100 due to the spring force of the spring module 700, when the link block 500 moves forward, the pedal arm 300 rotates about the hinge pin 200 in a direction in which the pedal arm 300 is inserted into the pedal housing 100 due to its own weight when the rotary joint 600 rotates, and thus the pedal arm 300 is in the concealed state in which its exposure to the driver is blocked.

When a return spring is applied to the hinge pin 200, it is possible to perform the operation of hiding the pedal arm 300 more easily due to the spring force of the return spring.

When the pedal arm 300 is in the hidden state, the pedal arm 300 is restricted from being exposed to the driver, and thus the driver's operation is not possible.

The hidden state is realized in an autonomous driving mode of a vehicle, and when the pedal is hidden, since a space under the driver's seat becomes a large space without interference from pedals, a driver can rest comfortably in a relax mode. In addition, safety can be improved by preventing misoperation of the pedal in the autonomous driving situation.

When the guide block 1300 comes into contact with the link block 500 due to the movement of the guide block 1300 by the operation of the motor 1100 in a state where the pedal arm 300 is hidden, the link block 500 is moved to the rear where the hinge pin 200 is arranged. When the guide block 1300 moves in a direction in which the guide block comes into contact with the link block 500, the triangular guide 1400 is inserted under the pivot link 600 and lifts the pivot link 600 upward. When the rotary link 600 rotates upward due to the triangular guide 1400, the arm unit 320 of the pedal arm 300 rotates about the hinge pin 200 in a direction protruding from the pedal housing 100 in a state of being supported by the rotary link 600 . Therefore, as in 7 until 13 , the pedal arm 300 is placed in the folded-up state in which the driver's operation is possible.

In a state where the pedal arm 300 is folded up, the guide block 1300 is located in front of the link block 500 and is in contact with the link block 500, so that the movement of the link block 500 by the guide block 1300 is restricted.

As described above, an electronic pedal device according to the present disclosure performs an electronic pedal function using a basic configuration and performs a foldable function by adding some elements to the basic configuration, and can be conveniently used in an autonomous vehicle.

In addition, the term referring to a control device such as "controller", "control unit", "control device" or "control module" etc. refers to a hardware device that includes a memory and a processor configured to to perform one or more steps that are interpreted as an algorithm structure. The memory stores algorithm steps and the processor executes the algorithm steps to perform one or more processes of a method according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. The control device according to exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure can be realized by a non-volatile memory configured to store algorithms for controlling the operation of various components of a vehicle or data about software instructions for executing the algorithms, and a processor configured to store a perform operation to be described above using the data stored in the memory. The memory and processor can be single chips. Alternatively, the memory and processor can be integrated into a single chip. The processor can be embodied as one or more processors. The processor may include various logic circuits and operation circuits, may process data according to a program provided from the memory, and may generate a control signal according to the processing result.

The controller may be at least one microprocessor operated by a predetermined program, which may include a series of instructions for performing the method encompassed in the aforementioned various embodiments of the present disclosure.

The above invention can also be embodied in computer-readable codes on a computer-readable recording medium. The computer-readable recording medium is any data storage device that can store data that can subsequently be read by a computer system and that can store and execute program instructions that can subsequently be read by a computer system. Examples of the computer-readable recording medium include a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (Solid State Drive - SSD), a silicon disk drive (Silicon Disk Drive - SDD), a read only memory (ROM). ), random access memory (RAM), CD-ROMs, magnetic tapes, floppy disks, optical data storage devices, etc. and realization as carrier waves (e.g. transmission over the Internet). Examples of program instructions include both machine language code, as produced by a compiler, and high level code, which can be executed by a computer using an interpreter or the like.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, each operation described above may be performed by one controller, and the controller may be performed by a plurality of controllers or an integrated single controller.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the controller may be implemented in hardware or software, or in a combination of hardware and software.

In addition, the terms such as "unit", "module" etc., which are included in the description, denote units for processing at least one function or operation, which can be implemented by hardware, software or a combination thereof.

For ease of explanation and precise definition in the appended claims, the terms/terms "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", "top/upward", "below/downward", "upwards", "after below", "front", "rear", "rear", "inside", "outside", "inward", "outward", "internal/inside""external/outside""inside","outside" , "forward" and "backward" are used to describe features of the exemplary embodiments with reference to the locations of such features as illustrated in the figures. It is further understood that the term "verbin den” or its derivatives refer to both a direct and an indirect connection.

The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present disclosure have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present disclosure to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain certain principles of the present disclosure and their practical application, to enable others skilled in the art to make and use various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, as well as various alternatives and modifications thereof. It is intended that the scope of the present disclosure be determined by the claims appended hereto and their equivalents.

Claims (20)

Electronic pedal device comprising a pedal housing; a pedal arm rotatably coupled to the pedal housing via a hinge pin to be operated by a rider; a displacement sensor attached to the pedal housing and connected to the pedal arm to generate a signal related to a pedal function when the pedal arm rotates in response to the driver's manipulation; a link block provided to be spaced forward from the hinge pin and fixed to the pedal housing at a lower side of the pedal arm; a rotary link provided to be rotatably coupled to the link block and in contact with the pedal arm; and a spring module including first and second end portions pivotally coupled to the hinge pin and the pivot connection, respectively, to provide the pedal arm with its restoring force. Electronic pedal device according to claim 1 , further comprising: a pedal arm stopper fixed to the pedal housing at a position forward of the hinge pin and configured to restrict a full stroke position of the pedal arm by being in contact with the pedal arm during rotation of the pedal arm. Electronic pedal device according to claim 2 wherein a top of the pedal arm stopper is located above a center line connecting a center of the hinge pin and a center of rotation of the pivot link in a straight line. Electronic pedal device according to claim 1 , wherein the pedal arm comprises: an operating unit configured to be operated by the driver; and an arm unit having a first end portion connected to the operation unit and a second end portion coupled to the hinge pin and connected to the displacement sensor. Electronic pedal device according to claim 4 , wherein the pedal arm has an organ-like structure in which a lower end portion of the arm unit is rotatably coupled to a bottom of a rear end portion of the pedal housing via the hinge pin and the operation unit rotates forward and backward at a top thereof about the hinge pin at a bottom thereof. Electronic pedal device according to claim 4 wherein the rotary joint comprises: a pair of link units rotatably coupled to opposite side faces of the link block; and a connection pin that connects the connection units and comes into contact with the arm unit to support the pedal arm, and to which the spring module is rotatably coupled. Electronic pedal device according to claim 3 wherein two arm units of the pedal arm are arranged in parallel to be spaced from each other on a left side and a right side thereof; and the spring module is arranged between the two arm units. Electronic pedal device according to claim 1 wherein the electronic pedal device is used as an accelerator pedal device or a brake pedal device. An electronic pedal device comprising: a pedal case; a pedal arm rotatably coupled to the pedal housing via a hinge pin to be operated by a rider; a displacement sensor attached to the pedal housing and connected to the pedal arm to generate a signal related to a pedal function when the pedal arm rotates in response to the driver's manipulation; a connection block provided in such a way that it is spaced forwardly from the hinge pin to be located under the pedal arm and is arranged to slide in relation to the pedal housing; a rotary link provided to be rotatably coupled to the link block and in contact with the pedal arm; a spring module including first and second end portions rotatably coupled to the hinge pin and the pivot connection, respectively, for providing the pedal arm with its restoring force; and a foldable actuator attached to the pedal housing and contacting the linkage block and the pivotal linkage during operation to operate for a folded-up condition or a tucked-down condition of the pedal arm. Electronic pedal device according to claim 9 , further comprising: a return spring including first and second end portions supported by the pedal housing and the link block to provide a return force for the sliding link block. Electronic pedal device according to claim 9 , further comprising: a printed circuit board (PCB) attached to the pedal housing and including a function of controlling operation of the foldable actuator. Electronic pedal device according to claim 9 , wherein the pedal arm comprises: an operating unit configured to be operated by the driver; and an arm unit having a first end portion connected to the operation unit and a second end portion coupled to the hinge pin and connected to the displacement sensor. Electronic pedal device according to claim 12 wherein the rotary joint comprises: a pair of link units rotatably coupled to opposite side faces of the link block; and a connecting pin that connects the connecting units and comes into contact with the arm unit to support the pedal arm, and to which the spring module is rotatably coupled. Electronic pedal device according to claim 9 wherein a guide groove and a guide protrusion are formed on the link block and the pedal housing, respectively, and sliding movement of the link block is guided by the guide groove and the guide protrusion. Electronic pedal device according to Claim 14 wherein a stopper projection for limiting movement of the link block in a predetermined direction is formed on a front end portion of the guide projection in a direction orthogonal to the guide projection. Electronic pedal device according to claim 11 wherein the foldable actuator comprises: a motor fixed to the pedal housing at one side of the connection block and operated by a controller of the circuit board; a guide block which moves linearly along a lead screw which rotates during operation of the motor to be in contact with or to be disengaged from the connection block and which, when in contact with the connection block, controls the movement of the connection blocks restricted; and a triangular guide connected to the guide block to move with the guide block and inserted under the pivotal linkage to apply a force to lift the pivotal linkage upwards when the guide block moves to come into contact with to come to a front side of the connection block. Electronic pedal device according to Claim 16 wherein the triangular guide is located below the pivot link when the guide block is in contact with the front of the link block to restrict movement of the link block and the full stroke position of the pedal arm is restricted when the pivot link is in contact with the triangular guide stands when the pedal arm is rotated about the hinge pin according to the driver's operation. Electronic pedal device according to Claim 16 wherein when the pedal arm is rotated about the hinge pin according to the driver's operation in a state where the guide block restricts the movement of the link block, the displacement sensor is configured to generate a signal related to the pedal function. Electronic pedal device according to Claim 16 , wherein when the guide block releases the link block due to the movement of the guide block by the operation of the motor in a state where the guide block is in contact with the link block to limit the movement of the link block, the Link block moves in a direction opposite to the hinge pin due to an elastic force of the return spring, the rotary link rotates toward a lower portion of the pedal housing due to the elastic force of the spring module, when the link block moves, the pedal arm rotates around the hinge pin in due to its own weight rotates in a direction in which the pedal arm is inserted into the pedal housing when the pivotal connection rotates, and thus the pedal arm is in the hidden state in which its exposure to the driver is blocked. Electronic pedal device according to claim 19 , wherein the link block is moved in a direction toward the hinge pin, when the guide block comes into contact with the link block due to movement of the guide block by operation of the motor in a state where the pedal arm is hidden, the triangular guide under the Pivot link is inserted and the pivot link lifts up when the guide block moves in a direction in which the guide block comes into contact with the link block, the pedal arm rotates around the hinge pin in a direction protruding from the pedal housing in a state in which it is supported by the pivotal connection when the pivotal connection rotates upwards due to the triangular guide, and thus the pedal arm is in the folded-up condition in which operation by the driver is possible.

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